Precious Time
by Beckah Godric-Northman
Summary: John packed all of their belongings, ushered the boys to the Impala, and began searching. They searched for two whole years, with nothing, no sign of Aria Winchester to be found. John gave up hope, but still deep down, he knew she wasn't dead... Sam and Dean Winchester were working a routine job. What happens when they find someone who bares a scary resemblance to their mother?
1. Chapter 1

**A.N I started this fic ages ago and was never intending to put it online, but I edited it a lot for my college assignment. Thanks for reading.**

**Disclaimer - I don't own any Supernatural characters. :( I only own the people you don't recognise from the show.**

**Prologue – Part 1**

**Lawrence, Kansas, July 20th 1990**

It all began in a medium sized white that stood on the lonely street, all of the other inhabitants sleeping peacefully. Inside one particular house, Mary Winchester stood with her two sons, eight-year-old Sam – or Sammy as he was called lovingly- and eleven-year-old Dean. She walked over to the little crib that stood in the centre of the room. A little six-month-old baby girl lay there staring at the three people.

'Come on boys, let's say goodnight to your sister.' Mary said, giving the two young boys a little nudge in the direction of the crib.

Dean got to the crib first, he stared down at the baby, ran his hand down her pale cheek, he kissed Ariadne– or Addy, as he liked to call her - on the cheek.

'Good night Addy.' He moved over to let his little brother past.

Sam now stood in Deans previous spot.

'Night Ally.' Sam giggled as Arry tried to nibble his finger.

Mary seeing this gave a little chuckle; she walked the rest of the way to the crib and kissed Aria on the forehead.

'Good night, love.' She cooed.

Ex-Marine John Winchester stood at the doorway of his daughters' nursery, smiling at the scene in front of him. He decided to make his presence known.

He walked further into the room

'Hey Dean, Sammy'

Dean and Sam turned around and smiled big at the sight of their father. Sam ran to him first.

'Daddy!' Sam jumped in his father's arms, nearly pushing him over

'Hey buddy!' John looked at Dean. 'Kiddo! What do ya think? You think Addy's ready to toss around a football yet?' He questioned, trying and nearly failing to stifle a smile.

'No, daddy,' The brothers exclaimed in perfect unison. 'She's a girl.' Dean continued.

'Boys, your mom's better than me at soccer.' he joked, releasing that smile.

'Really mummy?' the boys said staring at their mother in awe.

Watching the loving display, with a contented smile Mary glanced at the clock on the wall. She walked over to the trio.

'You got them?' she questioned, after placing a hand on his shoulder.

'I got them.' John confirmed. He reached on the wall on turned off the light.

'Sweet dreams, baby girl.' He gazed at the baby in the crib who was staring at them with her bright green eyes. John shut the door behind him and put Sam and Dean to bed before going downstairs to watch television.

Ariadne looked up at the mobile above her head, the unicorns, and rainbows oscillated on their own. The 'My Little Pony' clock on her wall stopped, and the 'Piglet' night-light flickered.

In her room, Mary was sleeping peacefully. On the bedside table next to the bed stood a picture of her and John standing next to the house when they first bought it. The crackling of the baby monitor sounded and faint crying came through the speaker.

Mary turned on the light. 'John?' she inquired, rubbing her dazed green orbs. She then looked over to see if John was in bed.

He wasn't. Mary frowned and proceeded to walk across the hall to Aria's room, a man concealed within the shadows stood over Aria's crib.

'John, is she hungry?' She asked.

'Shh.' the man's voice had a menacing undertone, Mary didn't notice. Her sleep-filled brain was still groggy.

'Okay.' She started heading back to her bedroom, but suddenly stopped and noticed the light down the hall was flickering; she slowly walked to it and tapped her nails to get the blinking to stop.

'Hmm,' She mused. She suddenly heard the television on downstairs, confused she walked down the stairs only to see John fast asleep in front of the television with the remote in his hand. She gasped in dread and ran back up the stairs, heading towards Aria's room.

'Aria! Aria!' she shouted, panicking.

When she arrived in Aria's room, the man turned to face her, his unnatural yellow eyes gleamed maliciously at her.

'You?' Mary panted, mystified.

'Hello.' the man-demon said with a little sarcastic wave.

Mary gasped again. 'This wasn't part of the deal!' She took an attentive step forward.

'Relax, relax I didn't do anything. It seems-' the demon started, looking at the baby with confusion and anger. He turned back to the distressed mother. '-that someone or should I say something has already been here.' Mary was looking at her child with concern. The yellow-eyed man rolled his sickly yellow eyes and gave an idle flick of his wrist and Mary flew into the wall, slowly sliding up towards the ceiling. The sallow eyed man grinned manically as he flicked his wrist lazily and cackled as Mary cried out in shock and agony, as a giant gash appeared on the whole width of her stomach, blood seeped through the thin fabric of her white nightgown, staining the delicate material a dark ruby red.

'Bye, Toots' He awarded her with a mocking smirk and a salute to her quivering form.

Suddenly John burst through the door. The demon was gone in the blink of an eye.

John walked to Aria's crib, to see that she was staring at him while moving her little arms and legs.

'Hey, baby. You okay?' He asked, knowing he wouldn't get an answer.

Unexpectedly something red dripped onto the lavender coloured sheet next to Aria's head, John frowned and moved his hand to investigate the strange substance. Red continued to drip, faster this time, he looked up find the source, and cried out in shock.

'No! Mary!' He looked frantically for a way to get his wife down, but finding none.

Mary abruptly burst into flames and Aria started crying at the commotion, so John picked her up and began to run down the hall when he is met by Dean and Sam.

'Daddy!' Sam shouted making a run for his dad, but Dean held him back sensing something was wrong. Very, very wrong.

John quickly handed Aria to Dean. 'Take your brother and sister outside as fast as you can! Don't look back! Now Dean, go!'

Dean ran as fast as his legs could carry him, Sam following closely behind, Dean made Sam get in front of him, as they ran down the stairs.

John meanwhile ran back into the nursery, frantically searching for Mary again. 'Mary! No!' The whole was room practically over-flowing with flames.

Dean ran out of the front door, Sam made it out first. Aria was held securely in his arms, he looked back up to Aria's window. 'It's okay, Sam.' He then looked at the wailing baby. 'It's okay Addy, Dean's here.'

John suddenly appeared behind the three terrified siblings, scooped them up into his muscular arms and ran to the road.

'I gotcha'.' He reassured.

The windows of the nursery exploded outwards from the fire, throwing pieces of debris everywhere.

An ambulance and a fire engine pulled up outside their house.

'It's all right. I got it.' Dave Briman said, handling a powerful hose.

'Here.' John Davis said, he handed a hose to Steven James, who walked towards the burning house, where there are already a few firefighters trying to extinguish it. However, with no avail.

Indistinct yelling from the fire fighters, but was muffled by the crackling and sizzling of the inferno. The Police arrived on scene pushing back onlookers.

'Stay back! Stay back.' shouted Officer Michael Queen, pushing one onlooker harshly away.

John sat on the bonnet of his Chevrolet Impala with a distraught look etched on his handsome face, He held Aria close to him while Sam and Dean hugged their father for dear life.


	2. Chapter 2

**A.N - Quite a short chapter but they should get longer. :)**

**Prologue – Part 2**

**6 months later, Jefferson City, Missouri**

Life had been hard for the four Winchesters. John had resorted to drinking Whiskey as a way to drown his sorrows. Sam had stopped talking. Dean always seemed to be angry. But poor, little Aria didn't really understand what was happening.

It had been six gruelling months since the death of the beautiful Mary Winchester. The police and fire department said that a gas leak caused the terrible blaze, but John knew what he saw that night. A man, only for a split second, but something was in that room with Mary and Aria. He saw a flash of yellow eyes and that's it.

John stared at his leather journal that he bought a few days ago. He thought that maybe, just maybe, it could help him somehow, writing his feelings down. He put the pen to the off-white parchment and began writing…

_January 20th, 1991_

_Aria has finally started sleeping through the night, and now that Sam shares a bed with her, she's out like a light as well. Dean insists to have his bed right next to theirs. He's begun to get very protective of his younger siblings. He's only eleven, and yet I see a maturity in him, just like Sammy. But me… I close my eyes and she's there. It always starts the same, I'm seeing her as she was before that night, beautiful and happy and alive. And I'm not seeing it, I'm living it, it's like I'm there… it's so real, I know I can reach out and touch her. And so I do… I reach out… and suddenly I'm back to that night, to the blood and the fire and Mary, Mary is on the ceiling, and how did she get on the ceiling… she can't be on the ceiling…_

_Here's the weird part. When I wake up, sweating and panting, I swear there is something there. I can feel it, hovering over me, over my kids. It's watching, it's waiting, I think it's even mocking me… You couldn't stop this. You couldn't keep her safe. You can't keep them safe…._

John sighed and closed the journal. 'That's enough for today.' He thought, glancing over at his sleeping children. All three of them are sharing a bed tonight, Dean in the middle with an even small Aria resting comfortably on his chest and Sam snuggling up to Dean's shoulder.

He sighed again, swigging his second glass of whiskey. He had never drunk enough to get drunk, but enough to feel like everything was all good and happy. He looked at the articles in front of him, all about Mary's horrific death. He knew he shouldn't be looking at them but he couldn't help it. He needed closure. He stood and marched to the other large bed, laid down and closed his eyes. He always slept better when he'd had a drink.

Aria stirred on Dean's chest, to see a man standing there. She didn't cry, just stared at him with the same amount of curiosity that he stared at her with. He had bright blue eyes and wore a long coat that skimmed the floor. The man picked her up off Dean's chest and promptly disappeared without a trace.

The next morning Dean woke up to see just his dad and Sam sleeping peacefully. He jumped up, 'Dad!'

John jolted up, 'What Dean?'

The commotion woke Sam also.

Dean's tearful eyes met John's hazel, 'Aria's gone!'

'What?' John looked around. Dean was right. There was no sign of the toddler anywhere. The door was locked and no windows were open. They couldn't even hear her.

'Where is she?' John shouted to himself frantically. He couldn't lose her as well. He'd just lost Mary not his only daughter as well.

With that, John packed all of their belongings, ushered the boys to the Impala, and began searching. They searched for two whole years, with nothing, no sign of Aria Winchester to be found. John gave up hope, but still deep down, he knew she wasn't dead.


	3. Chapter 3

**Case 1 – The Wendigo**

**Blackwater Ridge, Lost Creek, Colorado, September 6th 2005**

A campsite stood silent and innocent in the dark forest. Two small tents stood in a little clearing surrounded by different types of trees. A growl broke the silence in the serene woods. In one of the tents at the campsite, were two boys about seventeen or eighteen years old one of the boys Brad Makko had dirty blonde hair and grey eyes. The other boy Gary Coleman he had brown hair and darker brown eyes to match. The boys were playing video games.

'Dude you're cheating.' Brad Makko said playing on his Nintendo DS, His best friend Gary sat opposite him in the little tent. They were on a ten-day camping trip in the Colorado woods. It was now day six.

'No, you just suck.' Gary retorted childishly sticking his tongue out. Running a hand through his brown hair, he stared at the game screen in front of him trying to figure a strategy to beat his friend...again.

Back outside the tents, the malicious growling grew louder. In one of the tents sat a boy, a few years older than his companions, he had dark brown hair and dark blue eyes. His name was Tommy Collins and he sat recording a message on his cell phone.

'Hey Hailey, day six, we're still out near Blackwater Ridge, we're fine, keeping safe, so don't worry, talk to you tomorrow.' Tommy said into the mobile recorder, running a hand through his hair. He smiled in extra reassurance.

In the other tent with the other two boys, Brad suddenly shut the white-coloured Nintendo DS, and tossed it onto his pillow. He stood up, stretching languidly…well as much as you could in a tent.

'Hey! Where ya goin'? It's my moment of victory, dude.' Gary questioned, not looking up from his game, a look of immense concentration on his handsome face.

'Nature calls.' Brad answered, walking to the door of the opened the tent door and stepped outside into the bitter coldness, zipping up the tent behind him. The large tree opposite the tent made a good shelter from any prying eyes as he took care of his business. The trees rustled beside, almost mechanically, just as a menacing but low growl echoed throughout. A loud, piercing scream followed shortly after, a scream that came from Brad.

Gary jumped in fright. 'Brad?' Gary questioned, standing up, also not bothering to turn his game off, he just threw it to the side, a little fear entering his voice.

Tommy stopped speaking into the recording and shouted through the tent, he knew Gary and Brad could hear him. 'Gary, what's goin on?'

Gary opened the tent and meekly popped his head out to look around. Another growl, this time ten times louder. Claws ripped into his shirt, forcefully pulling his out of the tent, stalking off into the night. Gary's scream, so terrified, so gut wrenching echoed through the woods. From inside his tent, Tommy turned out the lantern he had on and crawled to the back of the tent, almost ashamedly wrapping his small cover around him, as if it would protect him from whatever was outside. Shadows moved very quickly along the outside of the tent. It suddenly grew eerily quiet, causing Tommy to think the thing had gone. His relief was short lived, as a claw ripped through the thin material of the tent and the cover, before latching onto Tommy's shirt, pulling him into the night also.


	4. Chapter 4

**Blackwater Ridge, Lost Creek, Colorado, September 7th 2005**

The voices of three young teens tore through the silence of the beautiful green forest. Aria and her best friends, Lucy, James and Cole were on a camping trip in the Colorado woods with Cole's parents, Julie and David.

The vast woodland spread for hundreds of miles with rivers, lakes and rocky cliffs running through it. Blackwater Ridge was a very dangerous place especially with the disappearances. The group was lucky that David was a ranger and knew the woods like the palm of his hand.

Aria split from her friends when Julie turned to her, bright blue eyes wide and inquisitive, 'So, what've you been up to since we last saw you?'

The green-eyed girl thought for a second, 'Um, just the usual, cheerleading, and hanging out.'

'Oh yes,' Julie smiled thoughtfully at the raven-haired teen, 'Cole said you're captain now'

Aria sighed inwardly; she hated being a cheerleader she only did it because her foster mother, Lucy was captain when she was at school.

The trees around them swayed ominously in the gentle breeze. The group had no idea that a terrible act was happening in another part of the forest.

The sound of running water met Aria's ears; she called her friends and ran to the source. She was awestruck as she was greeted with a beautiful lake.

She knelt down and looked at her reflection. A heart shape face surrounded by long golden-blonde hair, emerald green eyes that fluttered with thick eyelashes, a button nose and bow shaped lips. Overall, she was happy with her appearance. Aria glanced at her friends who were too busy splashing each other, she sighed, sometimes Aria felt as if she didn't belong in the group. Compared to Lucy, Aria felt unattractive.

Lucy was your typical all-American teenager. Luscious chestnut hair that everyone was jealous of, light grey eyes that didn't seem to match but still looked stunning, a small nose and 'kissable' lips, well, according to the entire male population of River Grove High School.

James and Cole were your average jocks. Both of them were considered the best-looking boys in school. While James had dark brown hair and green-blue eyes, Cole possessed deep auburn hair and deep blue eyes. They were best friends, have been since kindergarten.

Aria didn't dwell on her morbid thoughts and stood up, wiping the dusty soil off her bare knees. The rest of the group decided to wear your usual walking gear; grey walking trousers and a thin top covered by a waterproof jacket and a rucksack. In spite of this being told by Julie and David, Aria chose to wear navy blue shorts paired with a white vest covered by a denim jacket and rucksack and a pair of ashen grey All Star Converse.

After walking for twenty more minutes, David selected a small open field to set up camp, next they built the tents; placing thin metal tubes through the netted plastic of the shelter. The group had decided to have different colour tents; Aria and Lucy had a green one (Aria's choice), James and Cole a blue and Julie and David a camouflage.

It was now 7:00pm and it was getting dark, the animals of the night came out to play and the group of five dressed for bed and they all drifted off into a peaceful sleep not knowing what was lurking in the darkness, watching.

The creature stared at his new meals hungrily, arching its skinny back and clenching and unclenching its elongated fingers.

It used to be human, remembering a time so long ago when a simple hike in these very woods went terribly wrong.

It remembered its name, Joe, but nothing else came to mind. He recalled their camp getting cut-off by a snowstorm. They deviated to the abandoned mines where they lasted for about a year. The only way to survive was to eat each other. Joe was the most dominant out of the group and was the only one that lived.

If you can call it that, the skin on his body grew so thin that he couldn't wear clothes, his mouth sprouted more teeth, thicker and harder molars to chew on flesh, his eyes grew accustomed to the darkness of the mine. The only piece of human left was his voice, which he used to lure his victims.

He stared at the company once more before retreating back to his home. He would wait until morning. He loved to chase his prey. This thing, gaunt to the point of emaciation, its desiccated skin pulled tautly over its bones. With its bones pushing out against its skin, its complexion the ash grey of death, and its eyes pushed back deep into their sockets, the being looked like a gaunt skeleton recently disinterred from the grave. What lips it had were tattered and bloody, dry from dehydration. Unclean and suffering from suppurations of the flesh, the entity gave off a strange and eerie odour of decay and decomposition, of death and corruption.


	5. Chapter 5

Dean and Sam Winchester sat in the sleek black 1967 Chevrolet Impala as it drove down the lonely Colorado highway. Sam looked at Dean with an annoyed pout, or as Dean called it "Sam's bitch face".

'Sam! Sam. Okay I get it.' Dean grumbled, he had finally had enough of his brothers incessant whining and slammed his hand on the steering wheel in blooming anger.

Sam huffed reclining back in his seat, he gave Dean one last look of annoyance. Although Sam didn't flinch, he was anxious at Dean's reaction.

The car fell silent, as Sam drifted off into a light sleep. Dean glanced at Sam and gave a small smile.

Sam dreamt.

His brown orbs snapped open, not knowing where he was Sam flicked on his hunter senses. Trees swayed, as he looked around the deserted cemetery. He felt shivers run up his spine, as spine-tingling whispers broke the eerie silence. They whispered were inaudible to even Sam's 'hunter' ears. Sam suddenly recognized where he was and he gave low groan of mental pain.

He swallowed thickly and walked through the rows of gravestones, he suddenly froze as he came across one particular headstone.

JESSICA LEE MOORE

Beloved Daughter

January 24th 1984-November 2nd 2005

Sam lips gave a strangled sob and he fell to his knees, ignoring the pain and stared at the small picture.

'I'm sorry this happened to you.' He reached out to touch the photo when a hand shot out from the soil and grabbed Sam's hand. He gave a yell as the dirt-covered hand began to pull him under the ground. He jerked and pulled but the hand had a firm grip. His body slowly sunk beneath the soil and Sam gave one last breath before he was completely submerged.

Sam shot up with choked yell, his heart pounding, his breath ragged. Dean jumped and swiftly glanced at Sam, his deep green eyes filled with concern.

Peering back at the windscreen with narrowed eyes, Dean furrowed his brow, 'You okay Sammy?'

Sam squinted at him annoyed, 'Its Sam.' He snapped, before lowering his tone because of the look that Dean gave him. 'I'm fine Dean. Keep your eyes on the road.'

'You wanna' drive for a while?' Dean asked with a barely suppressed flinch.

Sam laughed as he looked up from his hands to his bother with barely concealed astonishment, 'Dean, your whole life you never once asked me that.'

Dean inwardly frowned, 'Thought you might want to. Never mind'

'I get it. You're worried about me, but I'm perfectly fine.'

Letting the subject go, but not forgetting it, Dean smirked at shifted in his seat, 'Where we goin' again?'

Sam pulled the map from the dash. There marked with a circle in the middle of green was Blackwater Ridge. 'Someplace called Blackwater Ridge, Colorado.'

'Good. How far?'

'About 500 miles.' Sam set the map back on the dash and sat up straight, 'But, it doesn't make any sense. The co-ordinates dad gave us point to the middle of nowhere'

Dean shrugged and said, 'They obviously lead somewhere. Dad might be there.' Dean knew this was highly unlikely. 'If we shag-ass we can make it by mornin'.' Sam scoffed quietly.

The green-eyed man suddenly broke out in a massive grin, 'Good.'

He revved the engine, causing purr to swamp the other noises. Dean precisely remembered when his father, John, gave him the beautiful machine when Dean turned sixteen. With sleek black leather seats and matching dash, the old Chevy was in great condition. Well, she should be with the amount of care Dean gave her. Yes, Dean referred to his car as 'she'. Sam had heard him call the car 'baby' as well, but whenever he mentioned it, Dean grew defensive and slightly embarrassed.

The next morning arrived. It was 7:00am sharp and the classic car pulled up outside the ranger's station. Dean slammed the door shut followed by Sam as they made their way into the modernized building.

The structure was only one story with several large windows making the inside bright. Brochures and leaflets littered the bulletin boards that were scattered among the grounds.

Ranger Wilkinson sighed for what seemed like the millionth time and took the fraying cap off his balding head, wiped his forehead and replaced the cap making it fit smug to his head.

He looked up as the bell above the door clanged. The two men that walked in didn't look like the other walkers or people searching for a thrill in the dangerous forest. The taller one had to be at least six feet tall with shaggy brown hair and dark brown eyes; he seemed the more intelligent of the two. Meanwhile the shorter man had more muscle with bottle green eyes and spiky ash blonde hair. Both men wore leather jackets (though the taller man seem uncomfortable in his), faded jeans and biker boots.

One thing is for sure, these men weren't your everyday hikers. He watched as the two men made their way to one of the many display cabinets.

Dean pointed to a picture. The bear was massive weighing at least 200 pounds, large teeth that were designed to rip through flesh and bone and glaring dark eyes. He looked at Sam with a giant grin, 'Dude, check at the size of this freakin' bear'

Sam looked at his awestruck brother and shook his head in disbelief; he swore Dean had the attention span of a two year old. 'And has a dozen or more grizzlies in the area. It's no nature hike that's for sure.' He scoffed lightly causing the rangers interest to divert to him.

'You boys aren't planning on going out near Blackwater Ridge by any chance?' Sam and Dean turned to the older man, their faces full of question.

Sam took charge of the situation, 'Oh no sir, we're environmental study majors from UC Boulder, just working on a paper.'

Their cover story was going as planned, that is until Dean opened his mouth, 'Recycle man!' he fist pumps the air with a somewhat sarcastic smirk which made the older man sneered slightly.

Letting out a sceptical chuckle the greying man said, 'Bull! You're friends with David and Julie right?'

Sam and Dean thought for a moment, they hadn't heard of anyone called the Julie and David, Sam quickly made up a convincing lie 'Yes we are Ranger-' Dean glanced subtly at the other man's name badge and smiled, '-Wilkinson'

'Well I'll tell you, they went out on the yesterday and are not supposed to be back 'til the 21st. So it's not actually missing persons is it?'

'No sir. Thank you for your time' Sam shook hand with the older ranger and turned to Dean who was too busy looking at the other wildlife pictures. This one in particular was of a swarm of large hornets. Dean shivered slightly, monsters he could handle but large swarms of bugs? Nope, definitely not. 'Come on Dean'

Dean snapped out of whatever stupor he was in and gave a hefty fake smile before following his overbearing brother.


	6. Chapter 6

**A.N Really sorry for the shortness of this chapter. It's kinda a filler. :)**

It was nearing 6:30am in the forest. Dew sat prettily on the leaves and tree branches dripping down in little trickles. The uprising sun lit up the morning sky. Colours ranging from red to pink littered the sky casting specks of light through the treetops.

Aria was the first one awake. She was the only 'morning person' in the group. She stretched and sighed as her bones clicked into the comfortable position. Yawning, the black haired girl stood up, unzipped the tent as quietly as she could and winced as a grating noise ripped through the silence, the manufacturers didn't think to make zips that are quiet, she thought idly.

She gasped, as the bushes rustled, before shrugging it off as an animal.

Aria continued brushing her long knotty locks, then wrapping a bobble around her untameable hair.

The black haired girl sighed loudly and entered her tent to dress, a pair of deep blue jean shorts, a black AC/DC band tee, black converse and a dusky black leather jacket. On her back, she carried a small rucksack packed with the essentials. Aria knew it was dangerous but she just had to explore and she couldn't do that with Julie and David whining about how unsafe the forest was.

As quietly as she could she stepped over large sticks that would probably make a lot of noise when stood on. Taking one last look at the three tents, Aria continued through the shrubs and trees, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling in her stomach.

The creature didn't notice one member of the group was wandering through his woods as he made his way, at lightning speed through the dense undergrowth. He reached the camp in mere seconds. Stupid humans on my land, the creature thought savagely.

The occupants were getting ready for the day and didn't even think of their impending doom as he was watching, waiting, until that perfect moment.


	7. Chapter 7

Sam and Deans slammed the doors of the Impala rather loudly as Dean finished parking. After finding more research, the brothers decided to head to Blackwater Ridge.

Dean sighed and looked at the Ranger that volunteered to take them through the forest. Even though he and his brother were trained, Dean wanted to keep Sam safe, not that Dean would ever tell him that though. He was too proud for that.

A person stood five yards away, next to his Ford Capris looked like a major douche (according to Dean). He had short, spiky blond hair that looked like he hadn't washed it in a while. His dull grey eyes gleamed in a way Dean did not particularly like. His aging face looked as if the sneer was permanently glued and he looked at Dean with a wonky smirk as he flicked the cigarette from his fingers.

Dean glanced at Sam to see if he noticed the less than nice man in front of them. The brothers exchanged wary looks.

'Well, well. What do we have here?' The man the man grinned revealing a gap next to his front teeth, Dean suspected was from either smoking or a fight of some sort.

Sam cleared his throat awkwardly, 'Yes. I'm Sam and this is my brother Dean. Your... uh, Roy right?'

Dean just stared at the man with an unemotional mask. He was ready if the man did anything... suspicious.

The man now identified as Roy nodded in acknowledgement and looked the boys up and down less than impressed.

After minutes of tense silence, the three men started their journey through the ominous forest. Dean and Sam kept their eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary while Roy up and down from his satellite phone.

Half an hour had passed filled with bouts of awkward silences and suspicious glances, the brothers didn't like this other man, at all. Something about him seemed... odd. Dean looked from his brother's brooding face to the lush green wilderness, listening for every little sound that penetrated the silence. Speaking of silence, the forest was far too damn quiet, Dean mused.

Sam seemed to notice this as well although Roy was oblivious. Therefore, when the boys suddenly stopped, Roy regarded them distrustfully.

'Ya' hear that Sam?' Dean questioned.

Sam looked around them quickly, taking in every little detail, but found nothing, 'Yeah. Not even crickets.'

Dean suddenly had an idea and turned to the very annoyed man stood next to him, 'What coordinates we at?'

The blonde ranger took his trusty satellite phone from his back pocket and eyed it for a second, '35-111.' he answered.

Sam and Dean looked at each other with the same look of recognition. Those were the same coordinates as their father, John's journal. Now they were getting somewhere.

Dean suddenly noticed some off, very off. Peaking around the bushes, he was greeted with a devastating site. The campsite was completely destroyed nothing living was left. The bodies of two adults, it looked like, were torn to shreds. Body parts were strewn across the clearing the only complete parts of the bodies were the head which were completely clean of any blood, which was very strange, even for the Winchester brothers. Sam and Dean knew that there was too much blood for there to just be two people, the brothers shared glances.

Roy cried and inhaled loudly at the sight. He recognised the bodies and gave a mournful cry, which seemed strange coming from such a cold man. David had been his friend and a good man, Roy didn't know how David put up with him all these years. Roy knew he was a heartless person that didn't show emotions, but seeing his best friend dead was enough to break the impenetrable shell he had created after all these years.

The Winchester brothers stood in silence and let the defeated man mourn. They knew what it was like to lose someone you love, cherish. Their mother had died in a terrible fire when Dean was eleven and Sam, seven. Their father knew that it was no accident and spent fifteen years trying to find the thing that killed her, but with no avail. They once had a younger sister who the family never talked about; she was a forbidden subject, as was Mary. Little Aria was only one year old when she went missing. They were in Chicago, if Dean remembered correctly. Dean had left the room for ten minutes, thought he wasn't aloud. He was bored sat doing nothing. There wasn't even any cable TV. Sam on the other hand was peacefully sleeping and heard nothing. This is a memory they vaguely recalled.

Roy stood up straight, his lips pulled into a tight line. His face showed no emotion what's so ever. He cocked his rifle determinedly.

'What are ya waitin' for? Let's get goin''


	8. Chapter 8

'Hey, wait up!' shouted a voice from behind her.

Aria jumped, startled.

Lucy jogged the rest of the way to catch up, 'Where you going?' she asked. She was glad she had managed to follow the trail that Aria left. Her best friend hadn't travelled very far but the forest was dense and near impossible to navigate through.

'Just for a walk. I can't just sit at camp waiting for everyone to wake up.' Aria shrugged, brushing past a particular thick bush.

'Kay.'

They walked in a comfortable silence for about fifteen minutes before something disturbed the peaceful quietness.

'Can you hear that, Lucy?' Aria asked, stopping dead in her tracks.

Her companion also stopped, tilting her head to the noise. 'Yeah, it sounds like voices.'

The voices sounded male, husky and loud, definitely a man's voice. There seemed to be two of them, from the difference in the voices.

'Come on, let's check it out.' Aria smiled largely. She was a daredevil all right. Trudging through the woods towards some unknown voices was definitely something Aria Winchester would do.

Lucy shook her head, 'You go ahead. I'm gunna head back. It's not far back to camp.'

'Spoilsport.' Aria huffed, with no real malice in her voice. 'Okay. Tell Julie that I'm okay, please.' With that, the girls went their separate ways.

The voices began to get louder, as she hiked through some think trees. Aria stopped herself as she nearly tripped over a large branch. 'S**T!' she shouted and then hastily covered her mouth but the damage had already been done.

The two men stopped in their tracks, 'Dean, did you hear that?' the taller man asked.

'Yeah. COME OUT. WE CAN HEAR YOU!'

'Dean, do you think that's such a good idea. You know what's out here.'

The shorter man, Dean, smirked. 'Probably not.'

Aria attentively walked out from behind the tree, right in the sight of the two men. She normally wouldn't have one that, but something about these men made her feel like she could trust them. They seemed very familiar, like she had seen them somewhere before. 'Maybe in a dream?' she thought, smiling meekly.

Both of the men were very handsome in their own ways. The smaller man looked older than the taller man. He had moss-green eyes. 'The same as mine.' Aria noted. He also had spiked dirty-blonde hair and the thinnest layer of stubble covering his chin. The taller man, however, had a mop of dark brown hair that almost covered his equally dark eyes.

The taller man smiled nicely. 'Hey, what are you doing out here?'

Aria was hesitant to tell these men who she was. They seemed nice enough. 'I'm on a camping trip.'

'By yourself?'

Aria shook her head, 'No. I'm here with some friends.'

She noticed that the smaller man had yet to speak. He was staring at her, not in a creepy way, but as if he had seen her before.

He finally spoke up, 'What's your name?'

'Aria.' she said simply.

'I'm Dean, this is my brother Sam.'

The tall man, now known as Sam walked a few steps closer. Aria fought the urge to back away.

'Why are you out here, all by yourself?' he asked in concern.

He had an inkling feeling this Aria was with the people they had found at the wrecked campsite. He didn't want to tell her, in case she, in fact was. They had found four bodies, but enough tents for another two people, possibly girls by the colour of one of the tents.

'I got bored, so I decided to have a walk.' Aria shrugged again. She didn't think it was that big of a deal. For two men that she had just met, Aria talked to them as if she had known them for years.

'It's dangerous.' Sam said.

Aria scoffed, 'What could be out here?' she paused for a second before continuing, 'Except for the occasional bear?'

Sam and Dean shared looks before turning back to the seemingly fearless teen.

'A lot of things,' Dean replied vaguely causing Aria to look at him like he had suddenly grown an extra head.

'Right.' She drew out the word, slowly backing away. 'I'm gunna go now, but, uh, nice meeting you.'

'Help!' a voice shouted from within the trees. 'Help me!'

Aria jumped and walked closer to the large men. 'What was that?'

Sam and Dean never replied they just shared knowing looks.

'That sounds like Lucy.' Aria shouted, charging in the direction of the cry, only to be held back by two arms.

'You can't go out there. It's too dangerous.' The owner of the arms said, struggling to keep a firm hold of the squirming teen.

'That was my friend. You can't just expect me to stand here while she's in trouble!' she shouted.

'Shhhh!' Sam held a finger to his own lips to silence her. She opened her mouth to speak once more, but the look of slight fear in the tall man's eyes was enough to keep her quiet.

'Run.' He mouthed. Aria nodded, not needing any more instructions and took off into the woods, away from the sound. 'It sounded like Lucy,' she thought, but something told her it wasn't, she just couldn't place what the feeling was deep inside her stomach. 'Instinct, maybe?'

She couldn't hear Sam or Dean behind her and feared the worst. She stopped, heaving breaths. A branch snapped behind her made her freeze in terror.

'Sam! Dean, is that you?' she whispered loudly. No answer.

An inhuman growl echoed through the woods, making her jump in terror. She turned and cried in shock

It was massive, the thing in front of her. It didn't look human. It looked dead, like a walking corpse or zombie. She opened her mouth and let out a loud scream, when she was hit with one of its giant hands, effectively blackening her world.

The creature knocked her out, with a swift blow to the head by its large hands. It picked her up, just as she was about to hit the ground, not to save her, no, he just didn't want more work to do to get his meal.

The trek up to its lair didn't take long with its super speed. The cave looked to be a mineshaft, an abandoned on at that. Boards looked as if they were clinging onto their last lives to try to hold the ceiling of the cave up. Large spider webs littered the walls and floor, along with the bones of small animals, something it had to live on when human didn't visit the forest for months on end. They were satisfying enough, but nothing compared to the juicy flesh and blood of a young human. It regularly liked to prey on younger humans, due to the fact that they had tastier, sweeter blood.

He/It carried the tiny human deeper and deeper into its sanctuary, until they reached the end, after winding through series of complicated tunnels that were like a maze.

It dropped her to the floor, unceremoniously, before tying her hands together with some old rope. He lifted her again and hooked the rope onto one of the hooks that hung there.

The girls head was tilted down, causing the blood to run down her face. The cut was small, not deep enough to need stitched, but enough to leave a small scar.

A small moan emitted from the girl and the creature turned towards her, head cocked in curiosity. Something odd, this human didn't seem… human. She gave off a very different smell to other humans. Her aroma was sweet. That was what drew it to her.

It watched as the girl opened her eyes slowly and raised her head, slightly wincing the discomfort of having her head down for too long. Her eyes didn't take long to adjust to the pitch darkness.

Aria's eyes quickly zoned onto the gigantic shadow in the doorway of the cave. They widened in fear. Her mouth opened, emitting an ear-piercing scream that seemed to make the shadow wince slightly at its pitch.

The creature raised a hand and whacked her on the head once more, effectively cutting the scream off short.


	9. Chapter 9

Dean and Sam trudged through the wretched forest, silently. Their hunter eyes were trained on the environment around, ready, waiting for something to happen out of the ordinary. An out of place footstep, the unnatural crack of branched when nothing is around.

Sam Winchester had a thought occur in his mind, as he dug through his pockets, pulling out a leather bound journal that was covered in odd runes.

'I think I know what we're dealing with, a Wendigo.'

Dean scoffed and looked at his litter brother, who was staring back with conviction. He knew he was right, the signs were all there and they all fit.

'No way, Sam. I haven't heard of any this far north.' Dean replied, with a headshake.

'Look at the facts Dean. It's incredibly fast, the way it can mimic a human voice.' Sam paused. 'The way it takes victims. It's gotta be! What else would take Aria? We have to look for any cave or… or dwelling.'

Dean sighed, he knew his brother was right, but he didn't want to acknowledge the fact that the creature was a Wendigo. He had only ever killed one Wendigo and that was with their father, when he was fourteen-years-old. They were working a case, down in Texas. People were going missing in the woods, not far from the town's local school. Ten teenagers ranging from thirteen to seventeen, all went missing in the space of two weeks. Dean was the one to kill the creature. Unfortunately, they were only able to save two of the teens.

He pulled out his two pistols from the back of his jeans and shook them, as if they would change into a more useful weapon, 'Well, these are useless.'

A loud scream suddenly echoed throughout the woods, scaring off crows that sat, perched on their branches.

'That was probably Aria. This way!' Dean hollered, sprinting off to the right in a dash of fury and anxiety. Sam followed behind, he was able to overtake Dean, but that was only due to his much longer legs.

The scream stopped as soon as they started, causing the men to panic.

Up ahead, the path split into two directions. Dean saw the small speckles of blood on the ground and knew, deep in his gut, that the blood belonged to Aria.

'Sam, look at this, blood. Aria's, you think?'

Sam knelt down, getting a closer look at the small amount. 'If it is, that means she has an injury, not a large one, but an injury at that.'

'Okay, guns out.' Dean said, even though the two already had them out, aimed and ready to shoot. 'Even if they are totally useless.'

At the end of the slight path was a cave. 'This has gotta be it.' Sam said, slowly entering the dark cave. They only had one flashlight between them and that wasn't very bright. It just managed to illuminate a few inches in front of them. The rest of the space was total darkness.

'Dean, did that kid, Aria, seem familiar to you?' Sam asked unexpectedly.

Dean nodded, even though Sam couldn't see it, 'Yeah she did. She reminded me of our little sister… But she can't be, she died, almost fifteen years ago.' Dean mumbled the last sentence to himself. He too, couldn't shake the familiarity of Aria.

Sam looked at his brothers bowed head for a minute, opening his mouth hesitantly before closing it again.

It felt as if they had been walking blindly for hours, but according to Sam's trusty watch, it had only been twenty minutes since they entered the winding tunnels of the mine.

A low growl penetrated the silence. It seemed angry and fierce, but Sam and Dean couldn't see anything around, even if it was pitch black. There was no crackling of the stones that sprinkled the floor. No distorted shapes in the little light that the flashlight gave, no nothing. Just eerie silence that is, except for the light breathing and footsteps coming from the Winchester brothers.


	10. Chapter 10

**A.N This will be the last chapter for a while. :( I have started new cases for the boys but I don't know whether to put them on this story or make another one for one-shots. O.o**

'Hey!' she shouted, causing the monster to snarl and zoom towards her, teeth bared in warning. 'Yeah, you, fugly.' With the blatant insult, the Wendigo used its massive claws and scratched her stomach with an arch of its arm.

White-hot pain shot through her stomach as she tried to move. Her hands were still tied above her head, constantly aching from the lack of blood flow. Across the cave, a small amount of light shone throughout and she was able to see the pale, dead body of Lucy. She didn't want to look, but the body was right there, in front of her, so taunting. Another wave of pain burst through her, causing her to let out a cry of pain. The thing had scratched her good, right across her abdomen, ripping through her clothes and the delicate skin below. She could feel warm blood drip down her front, down her legs and finally dripping onto the dusty floor. She noticed that the creature always seemed to linger near her, sniffing with its large nose. Its eyes closed in sick pleasure. It never touched her though, which she found strange in a disturbing way. 'Why is this thing keeping me alive?' she thought over and over again, thinking that maybe, just maybe, the answer would suddenly pop into her head. The creature was gone in an instant, but the damage was done. She knew it was long gone, 'probably hunting for its next victim,' she thought morbidly.

Her eyes blurred slightly and pain burst in her skull from the blood loss. He eyes slowly drifted closed, as she sank into a peaceful unconsciousness. She didn't hear the sound of footsteps steadily growing nearer and nearer, until they were in the tunnels that lead to its lair.

'Aria! Hey, wake up!' said a husky voice, accompanied by hand softly shaking her shoulders.

When her eyes didn't even twitch, Sam and Dean shared looks. The older brother grabbed hold of the young girls legs and held her up so Sam could cut the rope around her wrists without her falling. Dean held her dead weight and carried her, placing her on the muddy ground. They didn't have to worry about the Wendigo. It was long gone, still alive, but just deep in the woods. The brothers knew that for sure. 'For a hunting monster, it sure was dumb.' thought Dean, tapping the pale cheeks of Aria. She was so still. It was almost as if she had died, Dean knew she hadn't, the soft rise and fall of her chest verified that. However, the Winchester brothers knew that if they didn't get the bleeding stopped soon, she would die. They had to get her to a hospital. Now!

Sam knelt on the ground beside Dean. He manoeuvred her head so it was resting comfortably on his knees, 'Aria, wake up.' Sam looked at the slight ashen tone to her skin and began to panic. He knew Dean was thinking the same thing. This elicited a small moan from the bleeding girl, just as Dean used his over-shirt to try and stem the bleeding before it did more damage.

They still had to kill this Wendigo, but it'd be harder with Aria to care for. For a moment, Dean thought about abandoning the hunt, for the first time in his life, to take Aria to the desperately needed hospital.

The irate growl of the Wendigo ripped through the tunnels, startling the boys.

'Dean, you go and kill that thing. I'll stay here with Aria.' Sam said, replacing his hands where Dean's where previously over the wound.

Dean nodded, before reaching the flare gun that sat so innocently on the ground. There wasn't a guarantee the flare gun would even work, Dean suspected that it had been there for some time. If it failed, he always had his pistol to at least slow it down so they could escape.

He gave one last look at Sam before dashing off into the dark tunnel, pistol drawn and aimed, ready to shoot. He held the flare gun in the back of his jeans. His plan of action was to shoot the Wendigo with his pistol, to slow it down, then use the flare gun, and torch the sucker. 'If it all goes as planned,' Dean thought, walking further into the maze of passageways.

The snarl from behind him stopped Dean in his tracks, a wince on his face in his own stupidity. He wasn't paying attention, well, not as much as he should have been giving. He turned slowly, finger on the trigger, he shot, so fast, thanks to his hunter reflexes. The creature staggered slightly, before releasing a cry of pain and anger. Dean shot again, and again, and before long, the Wendigo was on the ground, bloody holes in its decaying body. Dean wasted no time, and reached for the flare gun. He shot, nothing happened.

'Crap!' Dean snarled himself, walking backwards. He had to get out of there.

With a swipe of its hand, the Wendigo pushed Dean forcefully, causing him to make contact with the hard wall. Dean groaned and shakily stood. The creature was right in front of him now, eyes dilated, angry, and red. It raised its arm once again, to make the final strike that would surely end Dean Winchester's short life. Dean was almost ashamed to admit that he was scared, as he closed his eyes.

A gunshot echoed throughout, though not from Dean, whose eyes shot open. His eyes widened as he caught sight of the flaming Wendigo, screaming and hollering in agony, as it slowly died and turned to nothing but a pile of charred bone.

His green eyes watered slightly as he took sight of the man standing in front of him. He was taller than Dean was, though not by much. He had brown hair like Sammy, green eyes like Dean and a slight beard from not shaving. He looked into the eyes of John Winchester, the man who he and his brother had been looking for the past month and her he was, not a mark on him. He seemed healthy and the small grin on his face told Dean, 'It's me, son'.

'Dad?'

'Dean.' They both said in the exact tone, as Dean took a step closer and finally hugged his father tightly, as if he was going to disappear into thin air. John patted him on the back before stepping back.

'Let's go get your brother.'

Dean nodded absentmindedly, following his father as he made his way back through the tunnels where Dean had walked earlier.

As they came to the entrance of the main lair, Dean couldn't help but think about what Sam's reaction to their dad. Dean had always been closer to his father than Sam had, but Sam and John were more alike. Dean had thought on many occasions was why the two never seemed to get along. Dean's mind drifted to the last time he had seen or heard from Sam…

_Crashes and thuds echoed through the empty parking lot of 'Sable's Flower' motel, 'No Sam. You're not going!' John Winchester shouted, his voice getting louder and angrier with every word he said._

_'Dad! It's only College for Christ sake. What's so bad about going?' Sam retorted angrily._

_Behind them Dean stood staring at the scene in front of him, with a sleepy Ariadne on his hip, her little head rested comfortably on his masculine shoulder._

_'Come on guys. Stop this' Dean tried to say, but the enraged couple didn't listen, they were completely focused on the argument at hand._

_Dean couldn't understand why they always had to fight. The pair of them was more alike than they knew. This fight was probably the worst of them all, sure, his dad and his little brother had tussles before, but Sam had never threatened to leave. Of course, Dean knew about Sam's intentions to go to college, he also tried to tell him that their dad wouldn't let him leave after losing his wife in the horrific fire and the loss of Aria, their dad couldn't handle anymore loss. The argument continued to rage on, one particular statement brought Dean back to the present._

_'I'm going dad-' Sam yelled, walking to the motel door, he hesitated for a few seconds. '-an d'ya know what? You can't stop me.' He added._

_'If you walk out that door Sam, don't you ever come back.' John bellowed his face flushed bright red with anger._

_Sam took one last glance at his family, his gaze lingered on the two figures that were staring back at him with heart breaking faces, at the back of the room. He pulled the door open, grabbed hold of his bag and walked out of the door of number 12A._

_John was stood shaking with repressed anger, he stalked to the door. The taxi was nearly out of sight. John's face changed instead of anger he had a look of complete sorrow on his face._

_'Sam's not your brother anymore.' John said turning back to the two remaining people of his little dysfunctional family._

'Dean, you listening to me, boy?' John snapped.

'Huh? Oh, sorry dad.' Dean shook his head, smiling faintly at his father, as if to reassure him.

They could see Sam now, cradling a small body. Looking closer, he could see that her eyes were now open, wide and slightly afraid.

'What happened?' she mumbled, holding a hand to her pounding head, before sitting up, not realising she was still sat on the muddy ground in front of three men she barely knew.

John was astounded. The resemblance to his late wife was mind-boggling!


End file.
